GRE Makes History in Canada
Launched in December 2004 by GRE's Kevin McCann as a one-man grassroots effort, "A Fair Deal for Newfoundland and Labrador" exploded this year into one of the most successful online movements in Canadian history.
In its first few weeks, the site generated letters from 25,000+ supporters - almost 5% of Newfoundland's population. And most importantly, it succeeded in helping spur a multi-billion dollar settlement for the province.
Headquartered at www.FairDealForNewfoundland.com, the site featured a letter-writing effort to Prime Minister Paul Martin, demanding that he not break his earlier promise to let Newfoundland and Labrador keep 100% of offshore oil revenues.
McCann, a native of St. John's, Newfoundland, built the site using Grassroots Multiplier®, and launched it with a few emails to friends and family. Through a carefully calculated plan of ongoing communications – including one of the highest trafficked blogs in Canada -- McCann succeeded in generating explosive viral growth, and massive media coverage across Newfoundland, and Canada as a whole.
What began as an online campaign turned into a true political movement, galvanizing thousands of supporters across the province and making it clear to the federal government that Newfoundlanders were united on this issue. And, within a few short weeks, the federal government backed down, and agreed to a historic settlement worth billions of dollars to the province.
"Newfoundland and Labrador was rich with resources and potential before Confederation with Canada in 1949, but we have since watched our natural wealth disappear, along with our jobs," explained McCann, Director of Online Development at Grassroots Enterprise. "I am grateful to the people of my province and my nation for standing up for this fair deal, for taking action on behalf of what is right, and for making history in the process."
The enormous impact of McCann’s effort was hailed this week by Newfoundland’s Premier, Danny Williams:
"Mr. McCann: Let me thank you publicly (through your web site), on behalf of the government and people of Newfoundland and Labrador, for the tremendous work you have done in creating a vehicle through which our province’s residents and supporters have been able to campaign for a ‘fair deal’ on offshore revenue sharing. I also want to thank the thousands of people who have availed of your web site to join the grassroots campaign for fairness. Together, you have been instrumental in helping us to achieve the historic Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Atlantic Accord 2005."
(Editor's Note: This was a completely independent, grassroots campaign, and neither Premier Williams nor the government of Newfoundland and Labrador was involved.)
As a further measure of the impact, McCann was invited to Ottawa, Ontario to address the 2005 Canadian Progressive Conservative (PC) Party General Session.
